Criminal defenses
Part of the common law series
Defenses to crime
Actual innocence
Excuse and exculpation
Defenses that deny the act:
Alibi  · Mistaken identity
Frameup  · Falsified evidence
Automatism
Defenses that negate intent:
Infancy  · Entrapment
Insanity  · Mental disorder
M'Naghten Rules
Diminished responsibility
Mistake of law  · Mistake of fact
Intoxication
Defenses that justify the act:
Self defense  · Consent
Duress  · Necessity
Provocation
See also Criminal Law
Criminal Procedure
Other areas of the common law
Contract law  · Tort law  · Property law
Wills and trusts  · Evidence

For the country-specific law, see provocation in English law.

In criminal law, provocation is a possible defense by excuse or exculpation alleging a total loss of control as a response to another's provocative conduct sufficient to justify an acquittal, a mitigated sentence or a conviction for a lesser charge. In some Common Law jurisdictions such as the UK and several Australian states, the defense of provocation is only available against a charge of murder and only acts to reduce the conviction to manslaughter. This is known as "voluntary manslaughter" which is considered more serious than "involuntary manslaughter", which comprises both manslaughter "unlawful act" and by criminal negligence. In some states with Criminal Codes, such as the Australian states of Queensland and Western Australia, provocation serves as a complete defense to the range of assault-based offenses. In the United States, the Model Penal Code substitutes the broader standard of extreme emotional or mental distress for the comparatively narrower standard of provocation. Image File history File links SmallLadyJustice. ... This article concerns the common-law legal system, as contrasted with the civil law legal system; for other meanings of the term, within the field of law, see common law (disambiguation). ... Actual innocence is the most widely used - yet often the least studied - defense to crime. ... In jurisprudence, an excuse or justification is a form of immunity which must be distinguished from an exculpation. ... Mistaken Identity may refer to albums: Mistaken Identity (Kim Carnes album) Mistaken Identity (Delta Goodrem album) This is a disambiguation page: a list of articles associated with the same title. ... A frameup refers to the act of framing someone, that is, providing false evidence in order to prove someone guilty of a crime. ... Falsified evidence, forged evidence or tainted evidence is used to either convict an innocent person, or to guarantee conviction of a guilty person. ... Automatism is a disassociative state where the individual suffering from it has no control over their actions. ... Defense of infancy is a form of defense by excuse; in which a defendant argues that, at the time a law was broken, they were not criminally liable for their actions, as they had not reached an age of criminal responsibility. ... In jurisprudence, entrapment is a procedural defense by which a defendant may argue that they should not be held criminally liable for actions which broke the law, because they were induced (or entrapped) by the police to commit said acts. ... In a criminal trial, the insanity defenses are possible defenses by excuse, via which defendants may argue that they should not be held criminally liable for breaking the law, as they were mentally ill at the time of their allegedly criminal actions. ... In criminal law of commonwealth countries, the defense of mental disorder - sometimes called the defence of mental illness - is a legal defence by excuse, by which a defendant may argue that they should not be held criminally liable for breaking the law, as they were at the time of their... The MNaghten Rules are used to establish insanity as an excuse to potential criminal liability, but the definitional criteria establish insanity in the legal and not the psychological sense. ... In criminal law, diminished responsibility (or diminished capacity) is a potential defense by excuse by which defendants argue that although they broke the law, they should not be held criminally liable for doing so, as their mental functions were diminished or impaired. ... Mistake of law is a defense sometimes raised in criminal cases, although rarely with any success. ... Mistake of law and mistake of fact are two types of defense by excuse, via which a defendant may argue that they should not be held criminally liable for breaking the law or liable for damages under a civil law action. ... An intoxication defense, in criminal law, is a defense by excuse, via which a defendant argues that they should not be held criminally liable for actions which broke the law, because they were intoxicated. ... This article and defense of property deal with the legal concept of excused (sometimes termed justified) acts that might otherwise be illegal. ... In the criminal law, consent may be an excuse and prevent the defendant from incurring liability for what was done. ... Duress (coercion) (as a term of jurisprudence) is a possible defense, via excuse, by which a defendant may argue that they should not be held criminally liable for actions which broke the law. ... In criminal law, necessity is a possible excuse for breaking the law. ... Criminal law (also known as penal law) is the body of common law that punishes criminals for committing offences against the state. ... Criminal procedure refers to the legal process for adjudicating claims that someone has violated the criminal law. ... A contract is any promise or set of promises made by one party to another for the breach of which the law provides a remedy. ... In the common law, a tort is a civil wrong for which the law provides a remedy. ... Property law is the area of law that governs the various forms of ownership in real property (land as distinct from personal or movable possessions) and in personal property, within the common law legal system. ... In the common law, a will or testament is a document by which a person (the testator) regulates the rights of others over his property or family after death. ... The law of trusts and estates is generally considered the body of law which governs the management of personal affairs and the disposition of property of an individual in anticipation and the event of such persons incapacity or death, also known as the law of successions in civil law. ... The law of evidence governs the use of testimony (e. ... For an description of the general principles, see provocation (legal). ... Criminal law (also known as penal law) is the body of common law that punishes criminals for committing offences against the state. ... In most litigation under the common law adversarial system the defendant, perhaps with the assistance of counsel, may allege or present defenses (or defences) in order to avoid liability, civil or criminal. ... In jurisprudence, an excuse or justification is a form of immunity which must be distinguished from an exculpation. ... In law, a sentence forms the final act of a judge-ruled process, and also the symbolic principal act connected to his function. ... This article concerns the common-law legal system, as contrasted with the civil law legal system; for other meanings of the term, within the field of law, see common law (disambiguation). ... In law, jurisdiction from the Latin jus, juris meaning law and dicere meaning to speak, is the practical authority granted to a formally constituted body or to a person to deal with and make pronouncements on legal matters and, by implication, to administer justice within a defined area of responsibility. ... Criminal negligence, in the realm of criminal common law, is a legal term of art for a state of mind which is careless, inattentive, neglectful, willfully blind, or reckless; it is the mens rea part of a crime which, if occurring simultaneously with the actus reus, gives rise to criminal... For the purposes of Public International Law and Private International Law, a state is a defined group of people, living within defined territorial boundaries and subject, more or less, to an autonomous legal system exercising jurisdiction through properly constituted courts. ... A Criminal Code is a compilation of government laws that outline a nations criminal offenses, and the maximum and minimum punishments that courts can impose upon offenders when such crimes are committed. ... Emblems: Faunal - Koala (Phascolarctos cinereus); Floral - Cooktown orchid (Dendrobium bigibbum); Bird - Brolga (Grus rubicunda); Aquatic - Barrier Reef Anemonefish (Amphiprion akindynos); Gem - Sapphire; Colour - Maroon Motto: Audax at Fidelis (Bold but Faithful) Slogan or Nickname: Sunshine State, Smart State Other Australian states and territories Capital Brisbane Government Governor Premier Const. ... Motto: Cygnis Insignis (Distinguished by its swans) Nickname: Wildflower State Other Australian states and territories Capital Perth Government Governor Premier Const. ...

Examples of provocation

The laws of most states provide that provocation will comprise some conduct witnessed or experienced by the defendant. In some states, mere gestures, taunts or fighting words are insufficient. Circumstances that have traditionally given rise to a defense of provocation include: Military signalmen use hand and body gestures to direct flight operations aboard aircraft carriers. ... The fighting words doctrine, in United States constitutional law, is a limitation to freedom of speech as granted in the First Amendment to the United States Constitution In its 9-0 decision, Chaplinsky v. ...

• A battery or assault inflicted by the deceased on the defendant or a third party, but not with the degree of force or in circumstances that would give rise to a defense of self-defense — a particularly relevant issue in cases involving the "battered woman syndrome".
• Mutual combat (which may be more formal duelling) — not operative in some states where self-inflicted provocation may be excluded from the defense.
• Discovery of adulterous conduct by a spouse.
• Although not a traditional provocation circumstance, some states have laws that a non-violent homosexual advance constitutes sufficient provocation to reduce a charge of murder to manslaughter^{[citation needed]}.

This page deals with the cessation of life. ... This article and defense of property deal with the legal concept of excused (sometimes termed justified) acts that might otherwise be illegal. ... The battered woman defence is a formal term of art forming the basis of a legal defence representing that the person accused of an assault or murder was suffering from battered person syndrome at the material time. ... For an account of the Steven Spielberg film, see Duel (movie). ... Since its coinage, the word homosexuality has acquired multiple meanings. ...

Controversy

Generally, the defense is controversial because it appears to enable defendants to receive more lenient treatment because they allowed themselves to be provoked. Judging whether an individual should be held responsible for their actions depends on an assessment of their culpability. If a person is insufficiently socialized and responds violently to any lack of respect, society requires protection. This is usually tested by reference to a reasonable person, i.e. a universal standard to determine whether an ordinary person would have been provoked and, if so, would have done as the defendant did. Thus, if the majority view of social behavior would be that, when provoked, it would be acceptable to respond verbally and, if the provocation persists, then to walk away, that will set the threshold for the defense. But, in Australia, Canada and the U.K., the relationship between the defences of provocation and self-defense has become particularly contentious in cases where one partner or former partner kills the other. On the available evidence from court records, critics of the current laws have identified a gender bias so that men who kill their former wives or girlfriends for breaking off the relationship have found it easy to claim provocation when compared to women in abusive relationships who kill their abuser, and then find it difficult to use their history of abuse as self-defence (see battered woman syndrome). Phil Cleary has been the most publicly visible campaigner on this issue in Australia. Mr Cleary's sister was murdered by a former partner who then claimed provocation, serving less than four years in jail. [1] In 2005, based on the Victorian Law Reform Commission's Defences to Homicide: Final Report [2], the Victorian government announced changes to the law of homicide in that State, which are intended to redress this perceived imbalance. [3]. Culpability (Blameworthiness) is the state of deserving to be blamed for a crime or offence. ... This Article discusses the learning process called socialization. ... The reasonable man or reasonable person standard is a legal fiction that originated in the development of the common law. ... The battered woman defence is a formal term of art forming the basis of a legal defence representing that the person accused of an assault or murder was suffering from battered person syndrome at the material time. ... Phil Cleary is an Australian commentator on politics and sport, particularly Australian Rules Football. ...